Graduate Students & Alumni

Our Graduates

Donavan Cain2001,
is Assocate Rector of St. Mark's Episcopal Church in Jacksonville, FL

Whitney Kimball Coe2008,
has taken a position at the Center for Rural Strategies in Knoxville, TN.

Erica Collins2000,
is working on completing her MS in biology at ASU and is also beginning seminary studies this fall at Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary. She lives in Todd, NC, with her partner, Julie. bethgimel@hotmail.com

Nancy Collins1999,
has changed her name to "Anita Mann," and is thoroughly enjoying her new job at Sherwin Williams, where she's fulfilling her life-long dream to be a mountain mover and "shaker." Still lazy after all these years, she can sometimes be spotted wandering the ASU campus looking for a parking place, and/or dodging UFO's. Her greatest accomplishment in life (thus far) is the not-one, not-two, but THREE tickets she has successfully wormed her way out of. She would like to thank the ASU Parking Nazi's and her parole officer for their support.

Dare Cook2005,
is working at the NCSU Graduate School (http://www.ncsu.edu/grad) in admissions. She has been accepted this fall into the Ph.D. program in Psychology in the Public Interest with a focus on Community Psychology. dare1231@aol.com

Dave Cozzo1999,
is now Dr. Dave. He is the Project Director for the Revitalization of Traditional Cherokee Artisan Resources (http://www.rtcar.org) and, with intensive training in yogic breathing, he will soon be able to say his title in one breath. cozzod@wcu.edu

Aaron Davis2005,
has been working at the Southwest Virginia Museum Historical State Park since May 25th, 2011. He accepted the position of Chief Ranger-Interpreter (Education/Program Director in non-state-park terms), effective July 25th, 2011. As opposed to many state parks, which focus on nature-based programming, this site focuses on cultural/historical programming, which is right up his alley.voicesofthehills@gmail.com | Aaron.Davis@dcr.virginia.gov

Dottie Demarest1999,
is the Genealogy and Local History librarian with the East Central Georgia Regional Library System, living in Augusta, Georgia. Genealogy and Local History, East Central Georgia Public Library, 902 Greene St., Augusta, GA 30901 | 706.821.2600 | Fax 706.821.2629 | demarestd@ecgrl.org

What can you do with a Master of Arts degree in Appalachian Studies?

Phil Jamison
is a nationally-known dance caller, old-time musician, and flatfoot dancer. He has called dances, performed, and taught music throughout the U.S. and overseas, including more than thirty years as a member of the Green Grass Cloggers. His flatfoot dancing was featured in the film Songcatcher for which he al- so served as Traditional Dance Consultant. He toured and played guitar with Ralph Blizard and the New Southern Ramblers, but he also plays fiddle and banjo. In 2004, he co-founded Dare To Be Square!, a weekend workshop for square dance callers. Phil’s forthcoming book about the history of Appalachian dance, “Hoedowns, Reels, and Frolics,” will be published by the University of Illinois Press in 2015. Phil teaches mathematics as well as Appalachian music and Appalachian studies at Warren Wilson College, where he also coordinates the Old-Time Music and Dance Week at the Swannanoa Gathering.

Tamara McNaughton2007,
works as the Agriculture Program Manager for Appalachian Sustainable Development. She coordinates programs focused on strengthening the local food economies in Virginia and Tennessee including Rooted in Appalachia and the Appalachian Farmers Market Association and that association’s Local Food Guide. She is also a certified organic farmer of two acres and the Fee Waiver Coordinator for Southern Sustainable Agriculture Working Group.

Mark Freed2017,
is the Cultural Resources Coordinator for the Town of Boone in Boone, North Carolina. Mark works with the Cultural Resources Department to oversee the function and programming of culturally significant buildings, grounds, and other resources in the town, working out of one of those sites—the Jones House Cultural and Community Center in downtown Boone. Mark's programs include coordinating an outdoor summer concert series, the Doc Watson Day Celebration, a weekly old-time jam session, a music lessons program, art and historical exhibitions, and coordinating public and private use of the community center. philburs@yahoo.com

Leila Weinstein
Leila Weinstein is the Director of the Bascom Lamar Lunsford “Minstrel of Appalachia” Festival and Program Coordinator at the Ramsey Center for Regional Studies at Mars Hill University in Madison County, North Carolina. She organizes programs for students, faculty, and community members that explore the culture, history, and arts of the Appalachian Mountains and also teaches Appalachian Studies courses. Prior to working at Mars Hill University, Leila was the Director of Education and Outreach at the Blowing Rock Art and History Museum and was the founding director of the Caldwell County Junior Appalachian Musicians (JAM) program.

Marc Williams
is executive director of Plants and Healers International in Asheville, North Carolina, and serves on the board of directors of the Appalachian Institute for Mountain Studies. He has studied the people-plant connection intensively while learning to employ botanicals for food, medicine, and beauty. Marc added a graduate minor in geography and planning to his Master of Arts degree in Appalachian studies while at Appalachian State University. He has spent over a decade working at restaurants and farms with a focus on sustainability and has visited over one hundred botanical gardens and research institutions during extensive travel in the United States and abroad. Marc has taken thousands of pictures of representative plants during these visits and taught clients about the world of plants, people, and their interface while working with over fifty organizations in the last few years.